spacetoday.net: Proton launches Amazonas satellite

Posted: Thu, Aug 5, 2004, 10:29 AM ET (1429 GMT)
Proton launch of Amazonas (ILS)

A Russian Proton rocket launched a Spanish communications satellite late Wednesday. The Proton-M lifted off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome on schedule at 6:32 pm EDT Wednesday (2232 GMT Wednesday, 4:32 am local time Thursday). The payload, the Amazonas spacecraft, separated from the booster's Breeze M upper stage a little over nine hours after liftoff. The satellite, a Eurostar E3000 model built by EADS Astrium, will be stationed at 61 degrees west longitude. The satellite will be used by Spanish satellite operator Hispasat to provide a range of transatlantic communications services using 19 C-band and 32 Ku-band transponders. The launch is the third commercial Proton launch of 2004 for International Launch Services, which markets the Proton and Atlas boosters; the booster has also flown two Russian government missions.